


a long road to get to here

by tossedwaves



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Inspired by The Rigel Black Chronicles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:08:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27562045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tossedwaves/pseuds/tossedwaves
Summary: It had taken a while for Hermione to accept what they had done.Hermione Granger had had to struggle the long way, scrounging for the scraps of attention that pureblood society would give a muggleborn witch educated at AIM. Hermione was grateful for that education now—she unequivocally thought it was the best that she could have gotten—but it still hurt.
Comments: 15
Kudos: 54
Collections: Rigel Black Exchange Round 2





	a long road to get to here

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rachel614](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rachel614/gifts).



It had taken a while for Hermione to accept what they had done. 

Hermione Granger had had to struggle the long way, scrounging for the scraps of attention that pureblood society would give a muggleborn witch educated at AIM. Hermione was grateful for that education now—she unequivocally thought it was the best that she could have gotten—but it still hurt. Perhaps in another universe, Hermione could have gone to Hogwarts, developed different skills there. Perhaps in one world, instead of Hermione the Healer, there was Hermione the Transfigurations prodigy, or Hermione the aspiring politician, looking forward to her career in the Ministry of Magic. But whatever way she looked at it, those futures had been closed to her from the minute she had been born. Those futures also had been—would have been—closed to Harriet Potter. 

She didn’t begrudge Harriet her success. Hermione wasn’t that petty. She wanted only the best for ambitious muggleborn and halfblood witches. Only...

One of the best things about Hermione’s time at AIM had been her friendship with Harry. Harry, whom she’d thought was so similar to her. Both penalized by Britain’s cruel and unjust blood laws, both Healing prodigies who would have to fight their way towards careers and recognition back in Britain. 

But Harry had turned out to be Arcturus Rigel Black, whose only hardship in life was that his dad hadn’t supported his desire to go to AIM. He could look forward to a long and illustrious career as a Healer in Britain without any worries, his path paved by his pureblood pedigree and a father who literally bankrolled the most prestigious national hospital. Nothing at all like Hermione, who at best could look forward to a low-paying job at the clinic in the alleys, at the fringes of the society Arcturus Black could walk through without hesitation. Hermione was happy with her choices, knew the clinic was a worthy cause, but—it still stung.

No, that wasn’t entirely true. Archie Black had lost his mother, and he had seemed just as disgusted by pureblood culture as Hermione. But it was hard to tell if that had even been true, if he had just been playing with his halfblood costume that he could take on and off at will. She could hardly think that way about Harry—but, after all, he had never even been Harry to begin with. She did not even know who he was, or what his values were. How could they have been best friends? How could they still be?

And Harriet Potter. She was a halfblood, and would have had to go to AIM with the rest of them. But she had seen an opportunity and she took it, completely bypassing the struggles that everyone else had to deal with. Instead of fighting against the system that oppressed all of them, she had used it to her advantage, making connections that would only benefit her at the expense of everyone else. 

How dare she play at friendship with the likes of the Malfoys and Parkinsons, using that closeness to attain life debts that would protect her? How could she stand to be friends with them, knowing what they supported and how they treated people like Hermione? Hermione had seen how little Harriet had confronted any of them, too preoccupied maintaining her own secure position to worry about the effects they had on others. How could she have just sat there for so long?

It had taken a long time for Hermione to accept what they had done. She had asked Harry—Archie—for some space, and although he had been upset, he gave it to her. Harriet Potter hadn’t attempted to contact her beyond an initial apology letter with her last conclusions about the Fade. Hermione appreciated the tact. It seemed like she had finally started to think about her effect on others. 

But that wasn’t fair. Hermione had done anything to reach her goals, anything within her reach. Could she truly say that she wouldn’t have done the same? It wasn’t Harriet’s fault. She had used her privileged position at Hogwarts to shield Hermione. The Tournament was still a sore point, but Hermione was given to understand that Harriet had done the best she could there. Harry—Archie—had even suggested that some blackmail had been involved. And now Harriet was working with whatever tools she had now to discredit the Tournament, and Riddle with it. 

No, it was neither of their faults. To blame each other was to ignore who was truly the cause. 

Perhaps it was fair to blame the two of them for using their relatively advantageous positions to sidestep the hurdles that others had to deal with. Hermione didn’t know if she would ever be able to forgive them for that.

But they had also been eleven. Magical children grew up faster, true, but they were still _children._ Children who should have never been confronted with a world that didn’t want them.

(When Hermione met the witch who had told her about the Wizarding World, she had asked about Hogwarts. That sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach and her heart—she would never forget it, as long as she lived.)

Hermione knew what it was like to not only feel unwanted, but to have to always calculate where she could go and what she could say. There was always the threat of violence against people like her.

Harriet knew what that was like, Hermione was sure. And she had acknowledged her past mistakes and was working to rectify them. Harriet shouldn’t have done what she did, but she had changed and was working to help others now. 

Hermione couldn’t forgive, but she could understand. She recognized the system that was at fault.

And Hermione would _end it._

No one else would suffer the dilemma she and Harriet had faced.

The two of them had already worked together to help end the Fade. How much else could they accomplish?

Hermione wanted to find out.


End file.
